The first thing we all should remember is LeBron James is a master manipulator.

James had to know the questions were coming on Thursday when the Miami Heat were practicing at Quicken Loans Arena. He recently hired a new "strategist," a man who worked on Arnold Schwarzenegger's gubernatorial campaign, so for all we know, his answers could all have been planned.

He had every chance in the world to discourage talk about returning to the Cavaliers. Instead, he encouraged it and embraced it.

James can opt out of his contract in the summer of 2014. If James wants to return to the Cavs, they must find a way to make that to happen.

Advertisement

You let bygones be bygones. Cavs owner Dan Gilbert is someone who could block a move of this magnitude. No word has leaked out about his preferences. But I would be surprised if he would stand in the way of James returning.

A Yahoo! Sports report stated one of James' people reached out to Gilbert in back channels to gauge his interest. James denied that vehemently after the game on Friday.

Another factor in all of this is can you believe anything James says? He said all along how much he loved playing for the Cavs and then left them high and dry in the summer of 2010. Everyone concentrates on "The Decision," but he never informed the Cavs he was unhappy in Cleveland. The Cavs thought right up to the last second he would return.

The Cavs bent over backward to appease James and his entourage. So much so they'll probably never do that again with any player.

Some have wondered how the Cavs would be able to fit a max contract under their salary cap in 2014. The answer is they might not be able to. They'll have major cap space this summer, and they're going to have to spend a lot of it to get better. This is their opportunity to improve.

James wouldn't want to buy into another rebuilding effort anyway. The Cavs can't hold cap space in case he might want to rejoin them two years from now. That's ridiculous.

If they can work something out in the summer of 2014, then so be it.

If he ever came back, the Cavs wouldn't be as indulging as they were with him and his posse. Every team that has a player of that caliber has to put up with some of that, but they won't bend over backward for anyone in the future.

James has found out the Heat don't operate that way. Pat Riley treats James just like he treats Mike Miller. That probably doesn't go over well with James.

Let me also say that if the Heat win a championship in the next two years, all this could change. James could decide to stay in South Beach.

A new age

In recent months in the NBA, star players such as Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul and Dwight Howard have asked to be traded.

They've talked at length about moving onto the next team while they are under contract with their original team.

Once they've opened up that can of worms, it puts their old teams in a lurch.

James talked about returning to the Cavs on Thursday.

Cavs coach Byron Scott said that's a product of the new age of NBA players.

"It didn't happen back in our day," he said. "You played where you played. If you got traded, that's a different story. If you left as a free agent once your contract was up, it's a different story. You didn't publicize that you wouldn't mind playing somewhere else. You didn't do those things.

"This is a different day in time. We had a lot more respect for the organization we played for that a lot of guys do now. A lot of this stuff, I don't understand because I'm old school."

He's no LBJ

On a TNT conference call the other day, analyst and former Cavs center Shaquille O'Neal talked about James' legacy. He said it's not fair to compare James with point guard Kyrie Irving.

"What LeBron did was fabulous, legendary," O'Neal said. "He's good. There will never be another LeBron, how he did it. He was a born leader. Kyrie is also a leader. (I'm) not trying to take anything away from him. I just urge people not to put too much pressure on him.

"This guy is on the right path. He's a coachable guy. He's a great team player. If Cleveland can make one or two moves this year and next year, they could become a respectable team again."

TNT analyst Kenny Smith also loves Irving's game.

"I totally love his game because he's so fundamentally sound," he said. "He's poised. He's mature, and what I love about him is he is big and strong. He hasn't been affected by a lot of different defenses thrown at him. He's mentally been prepared for this league."

Former Cavs guard Steve Kerr, another TNT analyst, said it's difficult to judge college players who appear in just 11 games.

"Cleveland made a good choice," he said. "They knew the type of talent and potential he had at such an important spot. They knew they had to have someone at that position. I love what he has done. He's aggressive, he's tough to handle, it's tough to get in front of him, and he is definitely their cornerstone for the future. He's a great pick."

Information for the NBA notebook was gathered by personal interviews and from other beat writers around the league.